


Back To One

by FallingLikeThis



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Afterlife, Fluff and Humor, M/M, Soulmates
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-23
Updated: 2018-07-23
Packaged: 2019-06-14 21:39:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,875
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15398016
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FallingLikeThis/pseuds/FallingLikeThis
Summary: Harry opens his eyes to a blinding white light. It fades gingerly and he blinks as his eyes adjust to his surroundings. There’s a soft cushion beneath his bum and his legs are crisscrossed in front of him. He’s only wearing a pair of white boxer briefs for some reason but he’s oddly comfortable wearing so little in a strange place. Slowly, he becomes aware of a crinkling sound and looks down to find that he holds a square of paper in his hands.Neutral Good it says in pretty, flowy handwriting.“Hello, everyone!” A chipper voice calls out, capturing Harry’s attention and pulling his eyes towards its location. He takes in the woman suddenly standing before him with her hands clasped in front of her.“Welcome to The Afterlife."





	Back To One

**Author's Note:**

> This is part of a Wordplay prompt challenge that a group of us are participating in for the prompt "Unused". To read the amazing fics that were written by the others on this prompt, [click here](https://archiveofourown.org/collections/unused/works), and to see all fics written as part of the challenge, [click here](https://archiveofourown.org/collections/wordplay_fic_challenge/works) or find the masterpost for this year’s challenge here.

Harry opens his eyes to a blinding white light. It fades gingerly and he blinks as his eyes adjust to his surroundings. There’s a soft cushion beneath his bum and his legs are crisscrossed in front of him. He’s only wearing a pair of white boxer briefs for some reason but he’s oddly comfortable wearing so little in a strange place. Slowly, he becomes aware of a crinkling sound and looks down to find that he holds a square of paper in his hands.

 _Neutral Good_ it says in pretty, flowy handwriting.

“Hello, everyone!” A chipper voice calls out, capturing Harry’s attention and pulling his eyes towards its location. He takes in the woman suddenly standing before him with her hands clasped in front of her. She’s not looking at Harry and it occurs to him that she said ‘everyone’ so he turns his head to look around him. There’s a room full of people, all sitting in the same position as him, all on cushions on the floor. He might have noticed sooner if he wasn’t at the front of the room.

“Welcome to The Afterlife,” she smiles showing all her teeth, eyes crinkling so much that they’re nearly just slits. She actually looks kind of scary if Harry thinks about it.

“If you’ll look down, you’ll find a piece of paper already in yours hands. This piece of paper tells you what your alignment was before you got here. And now, it will determine which Afterlife path you’re about to embark on, m’kay?”

“She looks like chaotic evil to me,” a raspy voice says in Harry’s left ear.

Harry turns his head to take in his neighbor… who is currently leaning into Harry’s space. Not that he minds. The guy is gorgeous as he smiles at Harry and winks one cerulean blue eye conspiratorially.

“What did you get?” He asks next, pulling the piece of paper from Harry hands before Harry can protest. He’s not even sure he _wants_ to protest. He should probably be listening to the woman still telling them about their possible Afterlife options but he’s not bothered about that either.

“Aww, Neutral Good. That’s cute,” the guys says, handing Harry’s paper back.

“What did you get?” Harry asks, gripping his paper once more.

“Wouldn’t you like to know?” neighbor guy smirks, clutching his paper to his chest where Harry can’t see it.

“Heeeey,” Harry pouts. “I showed you mine.”

Gorgeous neighbor chuckles, eyes crinkling with mirth. Harry is a step behind him in hearing what he’s actually just said and he coughs to try and cover his embarrassment.

“I mean… you know what I mean,” he says.

“Only because I looked before you could stop me,” the guy laughs, eyes glancing down at Harry’s crotch quickly before skittering away as his cheeks flush when he realizes what he’s done. When Harry squeaks and shields his lap with his hands, paper held between his fingers to give him more coverage, the guy covers his mouth with the back of his hand while he laughs. “Sorry, Curly. It was an accident.”

Harry leans closer, ignoring the way his heart is racing as he says, “So, Blue Eyes, since I showed you mine _twice,_ does that mean I get to check out yours now?”

His neighbor gives him an assessing look, mouth pursed but Harry can tell he’s trying not to smile. He seems impressed and Harry gets a little thrill from that.

His paper suddenly warms in his hand and Harry glances down at it, distracted from his conversation by the unexpected heat. For a split second, his paper is blank before his alignment appears again, the letters not making much sense. _Nhuoril Good_. Confused, Harry blinks at the page and the words he sees are normal again. _Neutral Good._

“People, please! If you don’t pay attention, you won’t know where to go,” the woman who seems to be in charge shouts, gaze flicking around the room.

Harry is surprised when he looks up to find that he and his neighbor aren’t the only ones that have been ignoring her. Nearly everyone is talking to their neighbor except a few people sitting ramrod straight and giving her their full attention.

“Lawful Good,” Blue Eyes guesses into his ear and Harry nods along with his assessment. They must be.

In the next few minutes a lot of things happen.

A piece of paper folded into an airplane goes whizzing past Harry’s face. Harry can just make out the _Chaotic Neutral_ written on the outside.

A man in the back of the room roars with rage, “I’ll _show_ you Evil”. Harry turns to stare at him wide-eyed, frozen in place as the man rises from his pillow.

“Neutralizers on.” The woman at the front of the room sighs into her watch and suddenly all is quiet again.

Harry twists his head to look around and sees a colored circle lit up on the ground around each person in the room, save their instructor.

The woman sighs, shaking her head, muttering to herself. “I _told_ them the new system is flawed but will anyone listen to me? NO.” She takes a few deep breaths and shakes out her limbs, working out the frustration.

Harry glances at Blue Eyes and finds him looking back. He crosses his eyes and smiles at Harry goofily and Harry fights down a smile. He gets the feeling that now is not the time for laughter.

“Lawful Good neutralizers off,” the instructor calls and Harry turns to see maybe three of the circles disappear.

“Your afterlife is this way, please line up, single file, and make your way through your door. Someone will greet you on the other side,” the instructor smiles at the people who follow her instructions, walking swiftly to the door she indicated to them.

Once they’re gone in a flash of brilliant green light, the instructor speaks into her watch again. “Neutral Good neutralizers off.”

The circle around Harry disappears and he glances around. There are several more people with his alignment than there were with the last one. Blue Eyes is still surrounded by a circle though. It’s crazy how sad that makes Harry.

Harry reaches over, fingers outstretched as he explores the circle. He gets a small shock when he makes contact with it.

“Ow,” He yelps, sticking the tips of his fingers in his mouth for a moment. Feeling abashed at the look the instructor gives him before she starts speaking to all of them.

“Your afterlife is this way,” she gestures to a new door. “If you would please line up, single file, and make your way through your door. Someone will greet you on the other side.”

Harry stands but when he looks down at Blue Eyes, he’s pouting up at Harry like he’s sad about their separation too.

Harry looks over at the line for his door, and then looks back at Blue Eyes. Why does it feel like his afterlife will be empty without him in it? He’s a perfect stranger to Harry but he can’t seem to leave him.

“What if—” Harry starts, still looking down at Blue Eyes. Blue Eyes drops his pout and waves Harry on. His eyes are sad but he winks and gives Harry a small smile. “What if I don’t want to go?” Harry asks, turning to the instructor.

“Oh god,” she rolls her eyes. “There’s always at least one of them.”

The last person in the line walks through the door and there’s a brilliant flash of yellow that makes Harry flinch. When he opens his eyes, the instructor is glaring at him as she shuts the door with a slam.

She rolls her neck, takes a breath, and reopens the door. “Sorry. Stress relief,” she explains before glaring at him again. “You’re supposed to be one of the easy ones.”

“I’m sorry but I—”

“Yeah, yeah. I don’t care,” she says holding out her hand. “Let me see your paper.”

Harry guiltily hands it over but even as he does, he can see it flashing again, the letters constantly changing. “What does that mean?”

“Which one was it?” The instructor asks instead of answering him, handing him back the flashing piece of paper.

“Which what?”

“It was this one, wasn’t it?” She asks, frowning down at Blue Eyes.

“Um, I don’t—”

“Neutralizer off.”

“Hiya, love,” Blue Eyes greets, leaning back on his elbows the second the circle around him disappears. “How’s the weather up there?”

“Sodding soulmates,” she mutters. “Get up. Soulmates get to choose.”

“Wait, soulmates?” Harry asks at the same time Blue Eyes asks “Choose what?”

“Yes, yes,” the instructor says impatiently, walking over to the podium and running her finger over her paper. “Harry Styles, meet Louis Tomlinson. Congratulations, you’re soulmates.” She tosses a handful of confetti that seems to have come from nowhere. “Now, would you like to go to the Neutral Good afterlife or the Chaotic Good afterlife?”

Harry is still studying Louis, his _soulmate_. The word itself gives Harry shivers but knowing that he has a soulmate and he’s actually standing right there in front of him makes something flutter in his chest.

“Louis,” Harry whispers, smiling at his soulmate.

“Harry,” Louis says, running his eyes over Harry’s body with a smirk. “Good lad, nice little body.” He nods his approval and Harry flushes.

“You’re not too bad yourself.”

“Ahehem,” the instructor clears her throat loudly and pointedly. “I asked, which afterlife?”

Louis glances at her and then glances around the room. There are labels above each door. Neutral Good glows a pale yellow while Chaotic Good has a bright pink glow. There are other doors ranging from a boring beige light to a deep, menacing, scarlet red for the other afterlives. And then there’s the blue door. It’s the only one not labeled.

“What if we choose that one?” Louis asks, eyes glued to the door with a swirling blue light.

“That’s not an option. That door goes back to Earth. It’s only there in case we made a mistake and took someone too early. They get to go back and be born again. That door’s not for you,” the instructor tells them.

Harry can’t explain why he feels so drawn to that one door. But one look at Louis’ face and Harry knows that he feels the same.

Louis looks back at him and it’s like they decide through telepathy.

“Don’t take this the wrong way love, you’re doing a great job,” Louis says, darting in to kiss the instructor on the cheek before taking Harry’s hand and making a run for the door. Harry goes with him without question, already laughing joyously.

“Thank you!” Harry yells back to her just before they cross the threshold, his piece of paper fluttering to the floor, unused. It’s stopped flashing now, and the instructor moves to pick it up, shaking her head at the _Chaotic Good_ that stares back at her. Damn soulmates.

She smirks at the door, closing it behind them. “I’ll see you next time, boys.”

 

Eighteen years later, blue eyes meet green in the toilets at a televised talent competition as two boys, soulmates, in fact, fall in love at first sight.

 

 

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading. Treat people (and fics (hint, hint)) with kindness. :D


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